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So Shall You Reap

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Mindful of the past, Brunetti has much to ponder. Meanwhile one of his officers runs into trouble at a Gay pride parade. The past and present are on a collision course. For many years, Donna Leon has been writing thoughtful, perceptive mysteries” —Sam Coale, Providence Journal Brunetti’s Cookbook, recipes by Roberta Pianaro, culinary stories by Donna Leon (Published previously in the United Kingdom as A Taste of Venice: At Table with Brunetti, William Heinemann, London, April 2010; Atlantic Monthly Press, New York, hardcover, May 2010) Leon] is terrific at providing, through [her] weary but engaging protagonist, a strong sense of the moral quandaries inherent in Italian society and culture.” —Eddie Muller, San Francisco Chronicle

Talking of the state of play, I loved how Leon described the task of plotting out the characters to unravel the mystery. She likened it to a pinball machine. The characters were like the balls careening about, seemingly unconnected and in all directions. En una fría noche de noviembre, Brunetti recibe una llamada del Inspector Vianello comunicando que ha aparecido una mano en uno de los canales de la ciudad. Poco después es encontrado el cuerpo, y se asigna a Brunetti la investigación de la muerte del hombre, un inmigrante de Sri Lanka con un sorprendente interés en el terrorismo italiano ocurrido durante los años 80. La investigación transportará a Brunetti a su etapa de estudiante y a aquellos ideales perdidos y errores de juventud en los que podría encontrarse la solución al caso. In Donna Leon’s sure hands, the crime novel becomes an instrument for exploring social justice and universal truths about human behavior while beautifully telling a compelling story.” —Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen Bookstore, Scottsdale, Arizona

Retailers:

Why, oh, why can't I meet a man like you? You know, we're about the same age. You are well read in philosophy and the classics, are devoted to your beautiful wife, Paola--the daughter of a count and a professor of English literature with an emphasis on Henry James--and your teenaged children, Raffi and Chiara. You're a good man without dangerous vices, have a kind heart, adore your beloved and historic city (despite the annoying tourists, especially those Americans with their white tennis shoes), and have the citizens and safety of visitors in mind as you do your job. Though you are skeptical of the Church (as are many these days, Italian and non-Italian alike), you treat everyone with respect and kindness, including your co-workers (Signorina Elettra, Claudia Griffoni--though she is from Naples--Lorenzo Vianello, and even your pompous boss Patta and that worm of a lieutenant, Scarpa). I hope to visit Venice someday and wonder, are there other men like you in this world? While there is an interesting plot, don’t read this book for fast action, but rather savor the words and thoughts, the pace of daily life in La Serenissima. And note that Brunetti’s mother has a lesson modern politicians would do well to heed. I’ve been following Brunetti for over twenty years (this is book number 31) and whenever I sit down with the latest episode I feel that I’m reacquainting myself with a group of old friends: Guido, his wife Paola and their children and also Brunetti’s colleagues at the Questura. The crime itself – if you can actually identify one – is often inconsequential to my enjoyment of these books, what I most enjoy is the verbal jousting that takes place between the various players and the frequent tangential musings on art, food, literature and history, or simply on the overt bureaucracy that is an inescapable component of life in this country. If this makes the books sound somewhat muddled or confused then I can only assure you that they don’t read this way. Give Unto Others is the thirty-first book in the Commissario Brunetti series by award-winning American-born author, Donna Leon. Venice, in the pandemic’s tail end, and the Questura is not overrun with criminal cases, so Brunetti agrees to look into a private matter, off the books, for a former neighbour. Give Unto Others starts with a simple premise. Commissario Brunetti is asked by a childhood acquaintance to look into the behaviour of her son-in-law, who is described as having said something to frighten her daughter. Brunetti takes it upon himself to make unofficial enquiries and enlists his most trusted allies: Inspector Claudia Griffoni, Sergeant Lorenzo Vianello and computer expert Signora Elettra Zorzi into the investigation. It is gradually revealed that there is indeed a crime behind the scenes, but that the reason for Brunetti being asked for a favour was more diabolical than initially thought.

Brilliantly evokes Venetian atmosphere. The characters of Brunetti and his family continue to deepen throughout this series.” — The Times (London) Regarding the symptoms of dementia, which may go on for a long time before a diagnosis is reached: "In his mother's case the symptoms had been snaking around in their lives for years before either he or his brother Sergio took notice of them." It pains me to say that the mystery (if you can call it that) was not gripping at all this time. It’s usual in Leon’s latest books to have different kinds of crime, but I always find blood crime much more entertaining, and this time around there was a not a single dead body in sight. Also, it felt like it kept going round and round the same points for a very long time. Donna Leon depicts the characters, food, culture, and people of Venice with a knowing eye for ‘just the right’ detail.” —Jennifer McCord, Bookreporter.com Donna Leon is a top thriller writer, on a par with Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Patricia Highsmith and Ruth Rendell. Women, so it would seem from literary history, have always been in their element with the genre of murder and violence.” — Sonntags Zeitung (Zurich)When reading a Brunetti novel, you expect to get more than just the story with which to immerse yourself. There are the sights, sounds and foods of Venice and the surrounding area. There is also Brunetti’s family: his wife Paola, an academic, and their two college-age children. One night at dinner, Chiara asks for her father’s help with an assignment --- they are to choose their favorite Greek play and scene. For Brunetti, it’s “Oresteia” and Clytemnestra’s first speech. When she asks why, he says, “Because she is so much stronger than I am.” The beauty for me in these books is in the little things, the details of everyday life and small interactions between the city’s people. An atmosphere is created of a place unchanged on the surface but ever changing underneath. Brunetti harbours a certain resentment in respect of the incremental changes ongoing in this place, but isn’t that true of all of us as we reach a certain age? And as the story settles into the investigation of a recognisable crime, he gathers those police officers close to him (characters well known to regular readers) and, between coffees, they ruminate on possible motives and root around to discover information that might lead them to a suspect. As always, it’s beautifully done and once more I experienced a pang of regret when I reached the story’s end and had to say farewell to these people and this place until (hopefully) the next book in the series is published. In between times, the author goes off on tangents about long past terrorist acts in Italy, but most of the time spends paragraphs having the characters justify what they think and say. Donna Leon provides another delectable slice of the thoughtful policeman's life at work and at home... So Shall You Reap is as witty and wise as anything Leon has written. To read her is to restore the soul.' Mark Sanderson, The Times

So overall this felt rather slight to me even though the 'crime' speaks volumes - and I found the plotting rather holey, not least the perpetrator and their actions. Still, it's always fun to be in Brunetti's company even if this isn't a showcase book in the series. Brunetti's pace had slowed as he thought about the similarity between this disease and Elisabetta's story. Get told what seems a simple event, and soon it's expanding out of control; understand the basic facts, until a new variant appears. Believe you've found the source, only to stumble upon new information that changes everything. Conclusions vanish, explanations fail. Stop being attentive, and the next day there are new victims.Drawing Conclusions (Forthcoming in 2011 from William Heinemann, London, and Atlantic Monthly Press, New York) The beginning was the most fast pace and one of the sweetest parts of the book. They were called to the gay pride parade because there this year was a fight. Times are changing. Acceptance of people’s preferences and differences are opening up. The bulk of the time there was about a peaceful and kind undocumented Sri Larkin immigrant named Insen who was living in a guest house on a mansion’s property. And about his dog Sarah. There was a female Benediction monastery behind it on the compo who had a lovely garden with fruit trees. The garden by the mansion was overgrown and the mansion itself was very rundown. The couple who lived there were very badly matched. It was sad. A hand was found first in the water and that led to the finding of Insen’s body. Who is he? What’s he doing in Venice? Why undocumented? Was he a Tamil Tiger? And other questions were raised. Before long, Brunetti has enlisted Officer Pucetti for a little undercover nosing about, Signorina Elettra Zorza (who has a certain bug concern of her own) to gather information, and his mother-in-law, Contessa Donatella Falier to broker introductions, all without official sanction. Each of them would understand the inherited debt of kindness behind it. Guido Brunetti loves his city and his family. He cares about the people he works with (but not those he works for) and makes the most of friendships and good food and wine. We know there will be a murder in the book but it takes a while for Leon to get us there - a gentle path with everyday events that need Guido's attention. It's potentially an interesting story based on not a legal crime, but a moral and ethical one. And one of the victims offers up a hard-hitting portrait of a family dealing with the consequences of dementia that is as emotionally powerful as Leon has ever been.

Scenes in the Brunetti apartment with Paola (his wife) and the children, are some favorite moments. Of course, Brunetti and his team will wrap up everything but not without some big surprises and revelations that were never meant to see the light of day. It also will make him question the very definition of loyalty. He sums it up best to Paola when he says, “I’m not sure I’m clever, my dear, but I am always faithful to the side I fight for.”Like all of Leon's novels, it ultimately feels like a glorious invigorating holiday.' Daily Express And now, here she is, with her 32nd book (her latest) showcasing Commissario Guido Brunetti, as always. Donna Leon y el Comisario Brunetti llevan acompañándome más de media vida. Después de más de veinte años, leer cada una de sus nuevas novelas se ha convertido en una especie de ritual en el que reencontrarme con viejos amigos para ponernos al día. Desde hace ya unas cuantas entregas (“Cosecharás tempestades” es la número 32), la serie dejó de interesarme por los crímenes en sí (que también), si no que lo hace por sus maravillosos personajes, que ya siento casi como si fuesen familia. Después del sabor agridulce que me dejó la anterior entrega, me alegra comprobar que en esta ocasión Donna Leon vuelve en plena forma. This is the most disappointing of the 32 books, for me, but many others sincerely enjoyed it, so it may just have been the mood I was in while reading, and perhaps I'm too critical. At that time the owners were away. It turns out the wife is an old friend of Guido’s from his childhood, Gloria Forcolin.

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